


Forbidden Red

by ScarletBane



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, BAMF Stiles, Blood, Choices, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff and Angst, Hunter Stiles Stilinski, Love Triangles, Lovers, M/M, Realization, Star-crossed, Violence, Work In Progress, clan feuds
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-01-22
Updated: 2013-01-23
Packaged: 2017-11-26 12:24:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/650496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScarletBane/pseuds/ScarletBane
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Summary: AU, Derek Hale is a werewolf torn between two feuding Hunter Clans.<br/></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. River Flows In You

Derek had lived his whole entire life putting the pack before himself.  The Hales were the only known werewolf pack inhabiting the town of Beacon Hills and Derek knew that as a part of the Hale pack: he had an obligation to dedicate his whole being for the sake of the pack; his family.

So when his father and mother came to him one night about serious pack business; Derek immediatley knew that he must comply.

His father’s eyes were a bright green and his gaze was stone cold. Mr.Hale placed a hand on Derek’s shoulder gripping him tightly. Derek winced at the slight pain; his father had possessed immense physical strength, but Mr.Hale was also the Alpha of the Hale pack, strength was a necessary trait to have.  Derek had been training his body all his life in hopes of one day if not surpassing, to at least achieve equivalent physical prowess as his father.

“Son, your mother and I have something quite important to ask of you.” His father’s voice was stern; he spoke with an authority, an Alpha’s influence behind each word. Mrs. Hale stood firmly by her husband’s side, her brown eyes watching her son intently. Derek had inherited his father’s green eyes and was careful to keep his eyes on the ground, showing submission to his father, the Alpha.

Derek nodded his head in response.

“We have decided to arrange for you to marry Kate Argent.” Mr. Hale lifted his hand from Derek’s shoulder.

Derek’s mouth quickly dropped in protest. “But…” Derek raised his arms; his eyes averted its gaze towards his father’s. He was about to open his mouth to dispute, but he noticed the glint of red in his father’s eyes and at that moment, Derek knew to stop.

“Your mother and I have spoken to the head of the Argent family and we have come to agree on a peace treaty. We have decided to unite the families by arranging two marriages; involving two daughters from the Argent Clan and two werewolves from our pack.” His father’s scarlet eyes reverted back to their normal green ones.

Derek clenched his fists; reminding himself to not look his father in the eyes directly when speaking to him. “Two? If I am to marry Kate Argent. Then who else in our pack is getting an arranged marriage?”

“Your cousin, Scott McCall.” His mother answered. “He will be marrying Allison Argent.”

Derek gritted his teeth. His cousin Scott had already been dating Allison, as a matter a fact, Allison was all the kid ever talked about. Scott had once said Allison was the sweetest angel to ever inhabit the earth and that she was beautiful.  Derek had never once seen this Kate Argent. At this point Derek was pretty much pissed off at the universe for always throwing shit at him, but then again, Derek was practically used to sacrificing his needs for the sake of the pack. Hopefully, Kate would also prove to be a _sweet beautiful angel_ like her sister Allison.

“Listen Derek,” His father began. “We know that you’ve always been ready to serve the pack, all your life you’ve proven that you are willing to do anything it takes to see that the pack  thrives and we want you to know that we are proud of you son.” Derek couldn’t help but smile slightly at the remark.  Receiving a compliment from the Alpha was aways blissful, ever since he was young, whenever his father would tell him how proud he was of his son; Derek had always felt a surge of satisfaction within himself.

Derek nodded his head in approval.

“You marrying Kate will give birth to a unity of two powerful families in Beacon Hills. As you know, the Argents need us to fortify their resistance against their rival clan, the Stilinskis.  And you also know that the Argents are a very powerful clan of hunters; with our new alliance, our pack can freely exercise their freedom in town without the worry of being hunted.”

“I understand.” Derek responded. His words betrayed his true feelings. Derek felt as though by agreeing to this, he would probably be ruining his life forever. Derek had always wanted a chance to live his own life, pheraps start his own pack, start a new family, _fall in love…_

“You are mature enough to understand the dynamics of the different groups that occupy the town of Beacon Hills.” His father spoke sternly. “We need this alliance.” 

Derek knew well of the politics of Beacon Hills. He nodded in response to his father.  The town of Beacon Hills was occupied by three different segragated groups.

There was the Hale Pack, which was the only group of werewolves present in the town. The werewolves had always abided by a law of not harming any humans. If the law was breached, then the hunters had the right to hunt them. Usually the werewolves had managed to keep to themselves and live amongst the humans in peace, however every now and then a stray or rogue werewolf woud threaten the peace and thus causing uproar between the wolves and the hunters.

Then there were the Argent Clan. The Argents were a very notable society of hunters. They had been resided in Beacon Hills for a long time and had a history with the Hale Pack (which also included full on blood wrenching wars because as the wolves followed a law, the hunters had to follow a code and many times; rules were broken.)  The head of the Argent Clan was an old man named Gerard, Derek had not known much about the man, but he had heard that the man was quite the… snake. Derek shuddered at the thought of having to marry his daughter. Actually, Derek wasn’t pleased at all to know that soon his family would be intergrated with another family, which also happened to be the fucking Argents.(In the past, many werewolves including those from the Hale Pack were brutally slained by the very blades of the Argents.)  Derek couldn’t contemplate how his father had decided to join the two together. Werewolves and Hunters living happily under one roof? Yea fucking right. Derek wanted so badly to talk some sense into his father, to release all of his feelings, his thoughts about the Argents…. But he was afraid to… he wasn’t allowed to talk back to his father, never ever _challenge_ the Alpha.

And finally there was the Stilinski Clan. The Stilinskis were another prestigious group of hunters. However, unlike the Argents, the Stilinskis had just recently come to inhabit the town of Beacon Hills (only about a few years). Derek didn’t know much about this certain group of hunters except the fact that they were always constantly on the move, searching for the next supernatural threat to society. Derek didn’t know the sole purpose of why they would come to Beacon Hills, when they had already known Beacon Hills was occupied by the Argents. When the Stilinskis arrived to town, The Argents weren’t very _welcoming_ of the other group. Derek assumed it was a territorial thing, who knew that hunters were so much like werewolves that they paid so much attention to territory and marking your property. The first time the Stilinskis had stepped foot on Beacon Hills, a fight broke off between the Argents and the Stilinski, leaving many injured and to the point where lives were lost. From then on, the Argents and the Stilinskis became arch rivals and every now and then fights/turf wars would occur in the very streets of Beacon Hills between the two.

“I knew you would understand, thank you son. Your putting the pack before yourself is very honorable indeed.” His father smiled and began to turn on his heels to leave. Mrs. Hale gently took her son’s hand in her own. She gave Derek a gentle smile before she too turned to leave as well.

Derek had stayed up for the rest of the night, unable to sleep. His mind filled with thoughts of the future. Would the unity of the Hales and the Argents really prove fruitful? Derek rolled his eyes. There he was again, thinking only about the outcome of the pack.  It frustrated him to know that it was branded in him at a very young age that the pack _always comes first._ Derek took a deep breath, he closed eyes, and for once he thought for himself. Derek was getting married. He hadn’t even known what it felt like to be _in love…_ and he was already getting fucking married. Who was Kate and how does she look like? Would she be an “angel” like her sister Allison or would she be a “snake” like her father Gerard?

Derek turned restlessly in his bed.

Either way; she was a hunter. A fucking hunter who killed supernatural creatures that includes werewolves, his very own kind.

~

Derek didn’t know what to expect when the next morning came and his older sister Laura had barged into his room to deliver news that he would be meeting Kate today.

“Lil bro! Wake up!” Laura grinned, poking Derek in his sleep.

"Mmmgah” Derek pulled a pillow over his face. “Go away.” His voice croaky. Derek hadn’t slept all night; he was way too tired to be bothered by his sister at the moment.

Laura began jabbing at Derek’s ribs harder, and when he didn’t budge, she yanked the pillow out of Derek’s grip.

“HEY!” Derek growled. The sudden movement had cause Derek to almost fall out of bed. “The fuck, Laura…”

Laura placed her face close to Derek’s, her nose almost touching his, a big grin plastered on her face. “You’re going to meet Kate today. Also, I heard she is very pretty, you’re one lucky werewolf.”

Derek shrugged nonchalantly. His eyes stared intently into his sisters.

“So you better go get dressed and try to look nice, oh and don’t forget to brush your teeth. You’re breath is quite raunchy”

“Go away.” Derek attempted to shove Laura away from his face, but Laura quickly pulled back before Derek could make contact.

“Have fun today, lil bro!” Laura called out as she skipped out of his room.

“Yea right, you’re not the one being forced to get engaged.” Derek muttered under his breath as he languidly got up to get dressed, pulling on a white t-shirt and sleepily trudged over to the bathroom. It was too early in the morning for a blind date.

~

There was a note left by father on the kitchen counter; that Derek was to meet Kate in front of the town library. Laura wasn’t lying when she said Kate was pretty. When he got there, Derek had laid eyes upon a strikingly beautiful blonde haired woman dressed in a silver peacoat, unbuttoned in the front revealing a dark blue blouse.  That had to be Kate, because she was the only one in front of the library and she was waving at him. Derek walked closer to get a better view.

“Hello there, you must be Derek Hale.” Kate spoke with a sweet tone, almost too sweet. She smiled; her grey eyes seemed to stare into his soul. There was friendly expression on her face, but behind the big smile, there was also a caculating undertone… Derek didn’t like it. Kate was indeed beauitful, but it was almost like a stunning sculpted stone figure, gorgeous in the outside, but stone cold hard in the inside.

“Hi.” Derek tried very hard to pull off a smile. “I’m Derek.” He pulled out his hand from his pocket in attempt to shake Kate’s. But Kate had already pushed herself onto Derek’s personal space; giving him an intimate hug.

“Well aren’t I the lucky one; they set me up with a hunk.” Kate whispered into Derek’s ear before she pulled away. “And he can dress too.” Laura splayed a finger over Derek’s leather jacket. The same sly smile never left her face.

“Uh, thanks.” Derek watched Kate intently and his eyes instantly fell on the shiny black pistol in a holster, hanging on Kate’s hip.

Noticing Derek’s gaping, Kate placed a hand on her gun. “I’m an Argent.” Kate smiled and winked. “We were taught to carry weapons at a very young age. It’s a hunter thing.”

“Of course.” Derek nodded. Damn hunters, always ready for a fight. But then again, Derek himself was a werewolf, he had claws and fangs; he practically carried weapons with him on an everyday basis as well.

Kate wrapped an arm around Derek’s, taking him by surprise. “Wanna take a walk down the strip? Get to know each other better? Since, you know, well, we are getting married and all.”

“Um, okay.”

Kate pulled Derek’s arm closer. Her fingers glided across Derek’s biceps. “Oooh what big muscles, I like that.”

Derek half smiled. “Thanks.” Derek had worked out a lot, it was a hobbie of his, and having werewolf genes had also helped a lot with the building of muscles and all.

“We’d make beautiful children.” Kate said with the same overly-sweet tone, as they both walked down the sidewalk.

O shit.

Derek shuddered at the idea. He had never thought of having children before… Heck, he’d never even thought he would be marrying at this age; he was only 23 for God’s sake. No, this can’t be happening, Derek almost broke away from Kate in panic when suddenly a woman came shrieking down the street with a toddler in her hand.

“RUN! THEY’RE AT IT AGAIN! RUN!” The lady yelled before she continued to run with her child. And then there were more civilians running from the same direction.

Rogue werewolf? Derek immediatley thought; could it really be another werewolf attack? No, it can’t be; lately the occurances of violent werewolves were dropping significantly, especially due to the ammount of hunters that had inhabited town.

Hunters. It must be the hunters.

Kate chuckled. “There must be a little hunter quarrel going on.” Kate had almost sounded… excited. And then she began pulling Derek towards the direction of the conflict.

“What?! Why are we going towards the feud?” Derek grunted.

Kate turned her head. “What are you scared? C’mon, don’t be a scaredy wolf. Fights are fun and besides I’m an Argent remember? I have a responsibility to assist my Clan.”

O God, she wanted to join the fight. Fuck. Shit. Fuck. Derek most definitely did not want to get himself killed today. He was just one werewolf going into a feud between two huge hunter clans.

So not good.

Kate continued to pull Derek along with her towards the center of town where the fight was going on. As they got closer, screaming, various shouting, and deafening gun shots could be heard.

Fuck.

Derek felt his fangs slowly elongating, just slightly poking at his bottom lip. His werewolf instincts were preparing him for what’s to come.

By the time they got to the center of town. A big mob of people were flailing about, toppling over each other, in one big messy brawl. On one side there were men and woman of various ages; wielding all different sorts of weapons, but the one thing similar about all of them were the bright blue gloves that they each wore. These were most likely the Argents as their clan wore the color blue.

On the other side were another group of people, but they each wore a crimson red scarf around their necks that flailed in the air. These had to be the Stilinskis. The Stilinski Clan had always been represented by the color red. 

There were several dead bodies scattered around the area, the harsh scent of blood filled the air.

These hunters were fucking ruthless, pheraps even more violently aggressive than werewolves themselves.

“Quick Derek! Go get your wolf on; we gotta back up the Argents!” Kate didn’t have one pinch of fear or worry in her voice at all. She whipped out her pistol from her hip and began running towards the side with the hunters wearing blue gloves. As she ran towards the Argents, she took aim and shot down one of the Stilinski hunters.  The hunter she shot was a large man that seemed to be in his late thirties, he fell to the floor, his red scarf falling with him, blood spilling out from the wound.

Derek gritted his teeth. Kate just shot someone, callously killed another human being, without mercy.  These were hunters, cuttthroat, brutal, savages and he was in the middle of town; surrounded by them. He quickly took cover, submerging himself within the group of Argent hunters. Apparantly this was the side he was on; back up the blue gloves; fight off the red scarves.  As the fight lingered, Derek didn’t actually fight at all, he couldn’t break the werewolf law; no hurting humans; this was not his fight; this was the hunter’s business, so he merely took cover and observed the chaotic skirmish. Hunters were everywhere shooting their guns, swinging their blades, Derek watched as more and more hunters were injured or dropping to the floor, dying.  Blood, iron, and fire inhabited the atmosphere.

Suddenly, a shiny black dagger was flying rapidly towards him, and then Derek felt a sharp pain on his thigh.  Derek’s eyes burned a bright blue as he looked up to see a figure in a red hoodie standing in front of him. The tall gangly red shadow in front of him held two black daggers in each hand. He wasn’t wearing a red scarf, but his scarlet hoodie shadowing the top half of his face disclosed that he was most definitley a part of the Stilinski Clan.

Derek roared as he pulled out the black dagger that was stuck in his thigh, blood spilling out as his flesh healed itself within moments. Derek clumsily threw the black dagger back at the red hooded hunter. The red hooded hunter dodged it with ease and swiftness that only a well trained hunter could possess.

Derek could only spot the mouth of the red hooded hunter and his lips were curled… the fucker was smirking at him.

“A werewolf?” The red hooded hunter had a boy’s voice. “What is a werewolf doing amidst a fight between hunters? You are just asking to be killed ya’know that?” The boy tone was calm and collected.

The little fucker. Who did he think he was?

Derek narrowed his eyes. “Ooh badass.” He snarled sarcasticaly.

And there was that smug smirk again. The red hooded hunter twirled the black daggers between his fingers as if to show off. Then suddenly with a quick flash of movement, a dagger came flying from his hands and coming directly towards Derek.

The adrenaline quickly kicked in and Derek took a crouching position ready to dodge the flying black dagger. But it was too late. The dagger had already found a way into Derek’s chest, digging deep into his flesh. With a loud malicious howl, Derek pulled the dagger out, ignoring the pain and to allow the wound to heal. Derek immediatley surged towards the red hooded hunter, his claws out to strike the target.

But before Derek was able to lay a clawed finger on the red hooded figure, the hunter sidestepped with lightning speed, he was almost like a blur of red.

“Too slow.” The red hooded figure smirked as he grabbed hold of Derek’s arm, in attempt to pull Derek off his balance.

Big mistake for the hunter.

Derek easily countered the move, by pushing the red hooded figure down to the ground, when he made contact with his arm. The hunter was agile, but he was nowhere near as physically strong as Derek, a werewolf. The hunter should’ve known better than to come head to head with a werewolf in an up close fight. He definitley had a better advantage if he just kept his distance and stuck with his previous strategy of throwing projectiles.

The red hooded figure cried out in pain as his back hit the ground with a loud thud. The red hood had flipped from his head, revealing a teenage boy with a buzz cut.

Derek was about to deliver a clawed slash but stopped when he made contact with the boy’s big brown eyes. “You’re… a kid.” Derek whispered.

After a quick moment of just staring, the kid quickly flipped back onto his feet, and in a swift movement, the kid pulled off some sort of ju jitsu technique and was able to flip Derek on his back. Derek crashed onto the ground with a loud bang. Now it was his turn to make the next mistake, and he was practically asking to be the next to hit the floor. 

The red hooded figure wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his hoodie. He pointed a black dagger at Derek. Examining closely at the blade, Derek noticed the curved tip of the black dagger. “The name’s Stiles Stilinski and I’m not a kid, I’ll have you know I just turned 18 a few months ago.”

Derek scoffed. “Still a kid.” And then in that moment Derek realised something important. “Wait. You are Stiles Stilinski? The son of the Stilinski Clan leader?”

“Yep. And you must be a Hale.” Stiles’ dagger was still aimed at Derek throat.

“Derek Hale.” Derek breathed. How did he let a kid take him down this easily and how did he know that Derek was a Hale?

Stiles finally pulled his dagger back and slid it back in the holster around his thigh, made to hold multitudes of daggers. He reached out a gloved hand offering to help Derek up.

Wait, he was just about to finish me off a minute ago… “Why?” Derek uttered, before taking Stile’s hand, feeling the leather of Stiles’ fingerless gloves in his palm.

Stiles helped pull Derek up from the floor. “I never had any intention of killing you. Trust me, if I wanted to kill you, you would’ve been dead the moment my very first dagger hit your leg. There is a reason why my daggers aren’t laced with wolf’s bane today.” Stiles declared with a cocky manner, and then there was that smirk again.

Derek gazed intently into Stiles’ big brown eyes staring back at him. The kid wasn’t kidding though. He was dangerous and Derek knew better than to understimate the son of the leader of a well known Hunter Clan.

“Listen Derek Hale, come with me, you should know something.” Stiles took Derek by the wrist and pull him along with him as he walked off, away from the big hunter’s quarrel that was still going on.

Derek unconciously followed along. He thought for a moment about Kate, but then realised that she is probably busy fighting, and Derek had really wanted to get the fuck out of this messy rival hunter’s dispute anyways. “Where are we going?” Derek was confused. Hadn’t they just fought each other like ten seconds ago? Why was Stiles pulling Derek to follow him? Could this be a trap? No, there was something about Stiles; Derek’s wolf senses told him that Stiles could be trusted. Unlike Kate, Stiles had a certain inviting _warmth_ in his big brown eyes…

“Somewhere quiet, where we can talk.” Stiles replied without turning his head. He continued to lead Derek out of the center of town. Derek followed the hunter without hesitation, curious as to what Stiles Stilinski had to say.

When they made it to a quiet isolate corner of town, Stiles stopped to lean on a tree. He gestured a hand towards Derek. “So, what is a werewolf doing with the Argents?”

“How did you know I was a Hale?” Derek retorted. He looked up at Stiles, the shadow of the tall tree loomed over the hunter, but Derek could still make out those big brown eyes and those lips… the way they curled… and the bastard was smirking again. Derek didn’t know whether he wanted to kiss or smack that smug smile off Stiles’ face. O shit. That’s a problem.

Stiles folded his arms across his chest. “Hold up big guy, I asked you a question first. How about you answer me first and after that it will be my turn to answer your questions. So seriously? What are you doing with those scumbags anyways?”

Derek thought for a moment before answering. This was a Stilinski Clan hunter he was talking to. And not to mention the son of the leader of the Clan. Would Derek be betraying his pack since his pack would soon be allianced with the Argents and the Argent’s worst enemy were the Stilinskis…

Stiles began to tap his foot, waiting for Derek to answer him.

Oh fuck it, the Argents were hunters, all hunters were the a same, cold hearted assassins.So what if Derek told Stiles about the alliance, it’s not like he is giving away some sort of top secret war plans. And maybe if he told Stiles about the alliance, then word will get back to the Stilinski leader and he would assess the unity as a sure defeat, and the turf wars would finally end. “I am to marry Kate Argent, the daughter of the Argent Clan’s Leader.”

“Oh that bitch?” Stiles rolled his eyes.

Derek couldn’t help but chuckle. Something within Derek had loosened up.

Stiles bit his thumb and stared at the ground, his brow furrowed as if to evaluate what Derek had just told him. “So you mean to tell me, that they are arranging a marriage between someone of importance from the Argent Clan and a werewolf from the Hale Pack, in order to form an alliance?” Stiles reverted his gaze back at Derek.

Hm, the kid was pretty clever as he was competent with throwing daggers. “That’s right.” Derek placed his hands inide the pockets of his leather jacket.

Stiles pushed forward from the tree and walked closer to Derek. “Listen Derek. I knew you were a Hale the moment I realized a werewolf had joined the fight. I’m going to be completely honest with you now. Don’t get caught in the hunter’s quarrel. The Argents cannot be trusted.” Stiles’ demeanor was serious. Then Derek thought back about all the rumors of how Gerard Argent was a snake.

“What choice do I have? I am to marry the Argent girl.” Derek gritted his teeth. He really didn’t want to have to do anything with the hunters.

“Why? Can’t you just choose not to marry her?” Stiles placed a hand on Derek’s arm. Derek could feel the slightest tingle from the touch; their skins only seperated by the fabric of his jacket. “From what I can tell… you don’t want to marry her. So why are you going through with it?” Stiles said softly. This was a whole different person than the Stiles from the fight. The arrogant countenance had been traded for a more sincere and caring mentality.

Derek couldn’t help but fall into the gaze of those warm brown eyes that seem to flicker gold when in the sunlight. There was a feeling inside his chest that was completely alien to him. It was as if his heart… was aching.

“Derek?” Stiles gently shook Derek’s arm.

Derek snapped out of his daze when he realised he was staring awkwardly into Stiles’ eyes while he was thinking about them. “Sorry, yea you’re right. I don’t want to get engaged. I have only met her this morning and I don’t see myself ever falling… for her.” Derek exclaimed. Derek had never actually spoken of his feelings or told anyone anything sentimental about himself. Not to anyone in the pack, not Laura, not his parents, he figured his father; the Alpha was too busy all the time to actually listen to Derek’s emotional bullcrap. All his life, Derek had felt as though the pack would be much better off without the baggage of Derek’s own emotional feelings. So it was a strange new sensation now that he was about to open up to this Stilinski kid. He didn’t know why, but it felt okay, if anything; now was the time to let out his bottled up feelings. “I don’t have a choice Stiles. All my life, I’ve been told to put the pack before myself. The pack’s overall well-being is priority. What I want and what I don’t want is futile, irrevlevant, pointless.I must listen to the demands of what the pack needs, sometimes… I just wished everyone took some time to actually listen to _my needs._ I have to marry Kate for the alliance, the overall benefit of the Hale Pack. It’s, it’s-“

“Like living a life you never wanted for yourself.” Stiles finished for him. His fist was clenched and his eyes never left the floor.

Derek nodded his head slowly.

Stiles let out a heavy sigh. “I know how you feel.” Stiles made a gesture in the air with his left hand. “At a young age, I was immediatley put into training to become a hunter. Ya’know being the son of the leader of the Clan and all; I didn’t have a choice of whether or not I wanted to be a hunter. On my 7th birthday, my dad gifted me with a set of throwing knives. Ever since that day, I was taught to become a worthy hunter. “These.” Stiles swiftly pulled out a black dagger from his thigh pouch and raised the blade in the air. “Were the only _toys_ I had to play with.” And in a quick blur of movement, Stiles had hurled the sharp projectile, the dagger found it’s way in a potted plant hanging from someone’s house twenty feet from from where Stiles was standing, the pot shattered with a loud clang. “While normal kids got cuts and bruises from playing sports or riding bicycles; I would get cuts and bruises all the time from training exercise. And then when I turned 13, I was assigned missions to hunt actual werewolves and such, everything I learned from training, was all put to the test, my life was always put on the line. Yea sure every now and then I would feel the blissful kick of sensationtional rush, or the adrenaline pulsating through my veins during a hunt and yea it felt nice _sometimes…_ but it was most definitley not worth living in constant fear all the time.” Stiles abruptly stopped what he was saying to look up in the sky. Derek noticed the change of demeanor in Stile’s eyes. Saddness and sorrow had taken over. Stiles returned his gaze once again and this time Derek saw anger. “Then my whole world took a sudden turn and it was like all that time spent to being molded into a worthy hunter… It wasn’t worth it for the price I was about to pay. If I had the chance to take back everything, to not be a hunter, to be reborned into the life of normalcy… I would take it in a blink of an eye.” Stiles eyes were watery. Derek’s wolf senses could detect the distress in Stiles’ disposition.

Derek couldn’t help but place a hand on the other man. “Stiles… what happened?” he whispered.

Stiles tore his eyes from Derek’s gaze. “My mom…” Stiles’ voice quivered. “I-I loved her so much.” Stiles took a gulp. “When the Stilinski Clan first stepped foot on Beacon Hills, there was an outburst between the Argents and us. There was a great battle.”

“Yes, I know about the very first fight between the hunters. Many were killed.” Derek spoke softly.

Stiles nodded languidly. “My mom was taken away from me that day. It happened so fast. I- I didn’t even get the chance to say good bye.” Stiles looked weary, his eyes dry. It was as if all the tears in the world had already been cried out aleady. Derek couldn’t help but picture a younger Stiles sobbing into his pillow in a pitch black room every single night; Derek couldn’t even imagine how tormented the feeling was to lose the ones you loved and held so dearly to your heart.

Unexpectadley Derek had found himself embracing Stiles in his arms and Stiles was actually returning the hug. “I’m sorry.” Derek murmured. Derek felt Stiles nodding into his collarbone. (Derek was only about an inch taller then Stiles.) Derek began rubbing circles on Stiles’ back, hoping to soothe him.

“Y’know…” Stiles began slowly. “Not only are you a werewolf and I a hunter, but I barely even know you and we just met.” Stiles spoke into the spot between Derek’s collorbone and neck. Stiles looked up at Derek and grinned. “And not to mention I’ve stuck several blades into your body… and here we are telling each other about our personal lives and all. Heck you even got me to hug you. There must be some sorcery going on.”

Derek couldn’t help but give off a laugh. Stiles chuckled along. He was right, thirty minutes ago, they had been trying to kill each other, now they were hugging… and Derek liked it… he liked how Stiles had fit in his hold, fitted between his arms and chest; Stiles smelled nice.

Stiles slowly pulled back from the embrace. “I hope you weren’t like scent marking me or anything…” Stiles jokingly remarked.

Derek suddenly felt his face flush, the tips of his ears burning. Oh crap, he was probably scent marking Stiles without actually knowing it. Fuck.

Stiles began to laugh. “Ah whatever, hey listen, I gotta go now but.” Stiles looked Derek directly in the eyes, and there were those brown eyes again, oh how Derek wanted to kiss each and every one of Stiles’ eyelashes. “You aren’t forced to do anything Derek. Do what makes _you_ happy. Don’t let others dictate how you choose to live; live your own life… before it’s _too late_.” And with that, Stiles was gone.


	2. If I Could See You Again

Derek had a lot going on in his mind as he was walking back home. ‘Before it’s _too late’_ Stiles had said. Would Derek truly regret it for the rest of his life if he were to marry Kate Argent? He thought about what happened back there with Stiles Stilinski. Had he actually felt a connection with the hunter? Derek had never been so confused in his life. When he was with Stiles, he had opened up to feelings that he has never felt before. His heart had actualy _ached…_ this was completely foreign to him, and not mention he had accidentally scent marked Stiles. What? Scent marking was something done with Pack, with those who were supposed to be _closed to you._

No matter how hard he tried, Derek couldn’t shrug off the thoughts of big brown eyes and that certain smug smirk.

But then he immediatley stopped dead in his tracks when he saw who was standing in front of the Hale house.

Derek took in a sharp breath and approached the blonde woman. “Kate?”

Kate’s curly blonde hair was slightly messy, and she had a few blood stains on her coat, other than that, she looked completley unharmed from the fight. “Derek! I was looking everywhere for you!” She still had that overly sweet smile on her face.

Derek wanted to ask her how the fuck did she know where he lived, but then figured that might come off as a bit rude. “Sorry, I was… chasing a hunter.”

Kate quickly ran over to Derek to give him a hug. Once again, overstepping his boundery… Derek cringed at the sudden contact. Derek didn’t even both to hug back. For some reason, Derek's mind went off to compare this hug with the hug he shared with Stiles… Kate’s touch was cold while Stiles’ embrace felt warm and like _pack._

Kate cupped her hands over Derek’s cheeks. “I’m so glad you weren’t hurt. I don’t want any of those filthy Stilinski hunters to lay one finger on my beautiful fiance.”

_Too late._

“I see you’ve made it… out of that mess in one piece as well.” Derek began to pull out the housekeys from his jean’s pocket.

“Oh baby, of course! Those Stilinskis have nothing on me.” Kate was now eyeing Derek’s keys.

Ignoring her, Derek started unlocking the door to the house. He was about to walk in when he realized that crap, Kate was still here. Derek arkwardly shifted his attention to Kate. “So uh? Do you want to come in or something?”

Kate exploded with energy, “Of course! I would love to! Thank you for asking baby!” She clapped her hands together, as if getting into the Hale house was a life's goal for her.

Derek mentally rolled his eyes. He walked into the empty house. Kate followed along.

“Where is everybody?” Kate asked as she placed a finger on some furniture, her eyes wandering over everything in the house. Of couse she’d be the nosey type.

“My parents are probably out on some pack business, my sister Laura… I have no clue where she is, and as for the rest of the pack, most of them don’t live here, they are scattered around all over Beacon Hills.” Derek replied, as he headed towards to kitchen to get himself a cup of water. As Derek was pouring himself a glass, he thought about offering one to Kate, ah what the hell; it wouldn’t hurt to be courteous to house guests, right? Especially if the house guest was someone he was going to end up marrying. “Hey Kate, do you wa-“ Derek began to shout into the living room when suddenly he felt a cold hand slide up into the back of his t-shirt.

Derek immediatley jerked away, almost dropping the glass of water. “Woah! Hold up!” Derek stared in horror at Kate standing behind him.

She had a different smile on her face, this smile was more of a lustful kind, and Derek saw the desire in her eyes. Kate raised a hand towards Derek. “What? Doggy doesn’t wanna play?” She snagged at Derek’s leather jacket and began to tug it off.

Derek quickly slapped her hands away. “No!” Derek backed a couple of steps away from her. “I’m not ready yet.”

Kate grinned. “Ooh playing hard to get? I likey.” She cooed as she literally pounced on top of Derek, grabbing his face and planting a kiss on his lips.

Completley shocked, Derek used all the force in the world to push her away from him. “The fuck!” Derek cried out, wiping his mouth with his sleeves.”

Kate had flown back a couple of feet and fell to the floor with a loud thump. “What the fuck is right! What is wrong with you?! You do realize we are getting married soon?” Kate quickly got up and dusted her jeans. “Wow. Derek.” And with that she stormed out of the kitchen and out of the house.

Good fucking riddance.

Derek quickly went upstairs and into his room. He shrugged off all his clothes and got into the bathroom to take a long hot shower.

~

It was getting late and night has come, the moon rised in the sky.

Derek was lying on his bed reading a novel when he heard footsteps rushing upstairs through his werewolf senses.

Almost instantly the door flipped opened, and Laura poked her face in. “Hey lil bro?”

“Yea Laura?” Derek reverted his gaze at his sister.

“You’re kinda in big trouble.” Laura frowned. “What happened with Kate?”

“Ugh.” Derek rolled his eyes.

“Yea, dad wants to see you downstairs.” Laura then vanished from sight.

“O fuck me.” Derek placed his book down, pulled on a shirt, and trudged downstairs, preparing himself for the worse.

 “Derek!” His father growled, the second Derek stepped into the living room. His father was seated on the sofa, his stare was intense and it was focused on Derek.

“Dad.” Derek huffed.

“Do you mind explaining to me what the hell happened today?”

“I don’t. I don’t like her.” Derek said, his eyes looking to the side.

His father sat in silence for a few seconds before replying. “That doesn’t mean you go and attack her.”

Derek’s eyes widened. “I didn’t attack her! She came onto me and I pushed her awa-“

“Enough! I don’t want to hear it Derek.” His father’s tone was cold. “You are going to marry her, you have no choice.”

Derek thought about always putting the pack before himself, he thought about Stiles words. ‘Live your own life… Before it’s _too late.’_ And that was it. Something broke inside Derek. Anger overcame him; Derek stared directly in his father eyes. “No father! I do not want to marry her!” He shouted.

At first his father took on a confused demeanor and then his eyes began to spark red. “Don’t you dare scream at me.” His father calmly spoke. This was the Alpha speaking, an authority behind every word.

However this time, Derek didn’t look away like he always did. No, this time, Derek’s eyes stayed locked onto his father’s red ones. As a matter a fact, Derek’s eyes began to glow blue. “No.” Derek simply whispered.

“What!?” His father’s voice boomed, shaking the house.

Derek closed his eyes and when they opened, they were back to their original green. Then he began making his way towards the door.

Mr. Hale stood up and pointed a finger at his son. “Don’t you dare leave this house.” He roared.

Derek gave his father one last stare, before he took the step out of the house.

~

The sky was pitch black, only the Moon and the stars lighting a path for Derek in the dark of night.

Derek had found himself strolling in the forest. The air was chilly, but nothing a werewolf’s body couldn’t handle. He walked down the beaten path, often stepping on several twigs; the night life in the forest was quite active as well. Derek would notice the flurry of forest critters passing by him.

He took a seat next to a tall tree surrounding by bushes. Derek plopped down with his legs lying flat before him. It was late at night, and he had no where to go, he couldn’t turn back home now. That was the first time he had disobeyed his father. He had to wait the night for his father to cool down before he went home… Derek heaved a deep breath, sucking in the cold air.

Derek was closing his eyes, ready to sleep, when suddenly he heard a twig snap, something was coming towards him.

“What is a big bad wolf doing all alone in the woods at this time of night?” A familiar voice called out.

Derek couldn’t help but snicker at the quip. “I could ask you the same thing, Stiles.”

Stiles appeared from the darkness and took a seat next to Derek. Derek could almost smell the familiar scent that seemed to comfort him. Stiles wasn’t wearing a red hoodie anymore, instead he wore a black longsleeve with a bright red scarf. Derek remembered the red scarves the Stilinski Clan members wore. “I like to take walks in the woods.” Stiles simply said.

Derek snorted. “At night?”

Stiles patted his thigh holster, where he kept his infamous black daggers. “I can protect myself and yeah; I like to come to the woods at night, especially when I’m alone at home with nothing to do. I get bored.”

“Alone?” Derek asked. “Don’t you have your clan?”

“Yea well we all don’t all live under one roof… My house isn’t that big. Derek… Tell me, does your whole pack live under one roof?”

“No.” Derek huffed.

“Exactly. I only live with my dad, and tonight my dad had some business to take care of, so I was home alone and wanted to come out to the forest, y’know?”

“I see.”

“So, why are you out here Derek? Sleeping in the forest? Why?”

“I-I… had a fight with my father.” Derek sighed.

“The Alpha?”

“Yea.”

“Ouch.”

“Pretty much.”

Derek heard Stiles’ sighing heavily and suddenly a hand was on his leg. It took Derek a moment to realize that Stiles was touching him, and Derek almost shuddered.

“Hey, if you want, you can stay at my house for the night.” Stiles offered.

“What.”

“Well it is getting cold, and I know you’re a werewolf and all, but even werewolves get frostbite, right?”

“Actually no we don’t but-“

Stiles interrupted by dragging Derek up onto his feet. “Cmon, let’s go.” And once again Stiles had Derek by the wrist again, leading him out of the dark forest.

~

Stiles had lead Derek into his home, and the house was huge. For a place that housed only two people, the living room was extremley large and set right in the middle of the living room was a stunning glistening black grand piano.

“You play?” Derek placed a hand on the lid of the grand piano.

“Yep, I’ve been playing since I was young, my…” Stiles stopped a moment. “My mom was a pianist and she taught me to play.” Stiles swallowed a gulp.

Derek immediatley placed a hand on Stiles’ shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

“No, no, it’s fine, here come.” Stiles took Derek’s wrist once more and lead him upstairs to his room.

“This is my room, you can stay here for the night, and so when my dad comes home tommorow morning, you can leave through the window, it’d be like you were never here.” Stiles pointed at his bed. It was quite a large bed with a puffy red blanket spreaded neatly on top. Derek thought to himself what it would feel like if he and Stiles had  _slept together,_ the bed was large enough to, in fact, fit two bodies...  “You can have my bed.” Stiles interrupted Derek's train of thought.

“No, it’s fine, I don’t want to impose, and I can sleep on the floor.”

“You aren’t burdening me at all… but okay, whatever you want.” Stiles said as he began to remove his red scarf, and then undressing entirely.

Oh fuck. Derek couldn’t help but feel his heart dropping. His eyes watched closely at Stiles removing his black long sleeved shirt. He wasn’t as big as Derek of course, but Stiles was pretty built and well defined, his abs were quite toned, like a swimmer's body. Stiles was a hunter who had trained physically all his life, and it paid off. Oh how Derek wanted to run his tongue over Stile’s rock hard stomach and kiss each and every birthmark spreaded unevenly around his body.

“Hey Derek? Y’okay?” Stiles was now staring wide eyed at Derek.

Derek felt the tips of his ears burn. Thank God it was dark in the room; Derek would’ve probably just died of embarassment if Stile saw him blatantly checking Stiles’ out. Shrugging off his dirty thoughts, Derek himself removed his own shirt and found a place on the ground to sleep. A blanket and pillow was thrown at him from Stiles’ direction. “Here ya go”.

Derek gratefully placed the pillow underneath his head and pulled the blanket over himself. “Thanks.”

“G’night.”

“Good night Stiles.”

~

 _A lullaby filled the_ _ho_ use.

Derek’s eyes were closed, but he was conscious.  The music had fully awoken him and he curiously listened closely to the melody. Derek got up and pulled on his shirt. He peered over at Stiles’ bed and noticed Stiles was missing. He looked out the window and found that the sky was dark, it was still midnight. It seemed as though Stiles was playing the piano, so he followed the music and headed downstairs.

A certain sadness hung on each note. It flooded Derek’s mind with painful memories. It tugged on his heart and overwhelmed him with emotions. Derek oddly felt as if he was experiencing Stiles’s grief.

As he got closer to Stiles and the music, agony embraced him. But Stiles was focused entirely on the keys, oblivious to Derek who took slow steps towards him. Derek watched as Stiles played gracefully on the piano, he was shirtless. It was dark, but the moonlight slightly peaked from the window, the beams lightly unveiled Stiles’ pale figure. Derek could amost make out each and every one of Stiles’ birthmarks.

With each key he played, each note released, misery seemed to be released from Stiles’s heart. 

It was truly a sad melody.

Hesitant at first, Derek placed his hands on Stiles’s shoulders. When Stiles didn’t show resistance, Derek slowly slipped his hands down his arms and to his waist. He knelt down and hugged Stiles’s chest, holding tight as he placed his head on Stiles’s bare shoulder.

Closing his eyes, Derek felt each somber note. They remained in that position, feeling the dismal but meaningful melody.

Once Stiles stopped playing, Derek heard his sobs, suddenly aware of the tears dropping onto his hands. “Stiles, it’s okay. I’m here for you.” Derek reassured.

Stiles was silent. He was afraid to cry in front of someone. But in this moment, he had no choice. Derek continued to hold him and comfort him.

“That was beautiful.” Derek whispered. Stiles only managed to nod his head. “What is the name of the song?”

“Chopin Nocturne in E Flat Major,” Stiles murmured softly.

Derek released Stiles and sat in the open space beside him. He saw the tears falling from Stiles’s face and gently wiped them away with his fingers.

“Your mom?”  Derek squeezed Stiles gently.

“Yeah.” He choked. “She taught me the song.”

“She was talented wasn’t she?”  Derek spoke softly.

Stiles sighed and nodded.

“It’s quite a somber piece.” Derek traced a circle on Stiles’ arm.

“Whenever I play it, I think of her and it hurts so much… to think of her. But-but.” Stiles looked down.

“But you can’t stop playing it. You can’t stop thinking of her.” Derek rubbed Stiles’s back for reassurance.

Stiles hid his face as more tears streamed down his cheeks. “It destroyed me Derek. She was good. She wasn’t even a hunter. She wouldn’t harm a fly. She didn’t deserve to die.” Stiles’ breath hitched. ”I’m angry, heartbroken, and regretful. And that’s only three off the top of my head.” He paused and took a deep breath. His voice cracked as he went on. “I just know that I could’ve done something about it.”

Derek turned to Stiles and took his chin in his hand, turning Stiles’s head to face him. Derek leaned in and kissed Stiles’s lips gently. Stiles was startled by the kiss at first, but then Derek could hear his heart pounding slightly... Then Stiles smiled slightly and kissed him back before breaking from it and wrapping his arms around Derek, hugging him tight.

“You can tell me anything, okay?”  Derek whispered into Stiles’s ear as he drew him closer. “Never stop playing, Stiles, never ever try to forget your mom. The thoughts may be painful, but the memories, the memories are precious. She taught you alot right?”

Stiles nodded quickly and began shedding more tears. But they were tears of joy. He kissed Derek once again, more passionately than before.

Derek in return, grinned and listened in joy as Stiles began to play Chopin Nocturne again. But this time it was with more heart than ever.

Derek could feel the happiness in the air all around him. It clung to his being, and from the blissful look on Stiles’s face, it clung to his as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is a link to Chopin Nocturne in E Flat Major, the song Stiles played in this chapter.  
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZUw78FXpG4
> 
> Thank you for reading! The next chapter should be ready soon!


	3. Love Me

When Derek had returned home the next morning (he had left the Stilinski household through Stiles’ window of course) Derek was surprised to find his whole family sitting in the living room, with Kate.

“Um, good morning?” Derek didn’t know what else to say, as he  awkwardly walked back in the house. Especially after the big fight from yesterday.

Almost immediately, Mrs. Hale jumped up from her seat and ran over to Derek to hug her son in a crushing grip. “Derek! You’re back; thank the lords nothing happened to you!” Mrs. Hale pulled back and cupped her hands around Derek’s face to take a better look at him. She furrowed her brows. “Don’t you ever do that again! You had me worred all night.”

“Sorry mom, but you don’t have to worry, I am a grown man. I can take care of myself.”

His mother sighed. “I know, I know, but you’re always going to be my little cub, you know that right?”

Derek kissed his mother in the cheek. “I love you mom.”

His mother smiled and returned to her seat on the couch next to her husband. Mr. Hale sat there the whole time, his eyes never leaving Derek’s. “Son.”

“Dad.”

Mr. Hale waved a hand over to Kate. “We have a guest.”

Derek almost rolled his eyes. Seriously? They just had a huge fight last night and it was like his father had forgotten everything so they could focus on Kate. Derek waved a hand.

Kate smiled at Derek and waved back. “Hello Derek.” This time the overly-sweet smile was missing from her face. Derek assumed she was still a bit mad for pushing her off him the other day.

His father made a gesture in the air to beckon his son to have a seat. “Derek we have to talk. Please.”

Derek nodded slightly and took a seat between his father and Laura. Laura placed a gentle hand on Derek’s shoulder, easing some of Derek’s anxiety.

“Derek, what happened last night…” His father began. “I am sorry. I shouldn’t have yelled at you.”

What. Derek was was left stupefied, his mouth dropped slightly from the surprise. His father, the Alpha, had actually apoligized to him? In public? When there was an Argent hunter sitting right acrossed from them? No way.

“Now with that put aside, I want to address the situation that happended yesterday… “Mr. Hale stopped abruptly, his eyes turning to Kate.

Kate raised a hand as if she had been awaiting her turn to speak for awhile now. “Derek, I want to apoligize as well. I’m sorry I… did what I did yesterday, it was inappropriate and I know that even though we are engaged, and we’ve just met each other…I'm sorry Derek... I’m willing to take it slow.” Kate reached into her jacket and pulled out an envelope. She placed the envelope on Derek’s lap. “This is an invitation to my sister Allison’s 19th birthday party to be held tommorow at the Argent Mansion. Kate stood up. “Derek, please forgive me but I have business to take care of now and must leave, I hope you will accompany me as my date for tommorow’s party, we can start over again.” And with that, Kate left, her heels clicking away before the door shut with a bang.

Derek held the invatation in his hand.

“Please son, she is willing to start over.” He heard his father saying besides him. “It will be fun.”

“I don’t know dad…” Derek sighed. He thought about Stiles, the moment they shared last night. “I don’t know if I want to go through with this.” Derek peered over at his father.

His father let out a deep sigh. His eye lids drooped low as he stared at the ground. Derek had never seen his father so upset. It almost hurt Derek to see his father react like this. All his life he had watched his father lead the pack with the manner of a powerful Alpha; now his father seemed... broken. No, Derek couldn’t bear to see him like that.

“Fine. I will go.” Derek sighed.

His father almost half smiled. He placed a heavy hand on Derek’s lap. “Thank you son. This unity between the Argents and the Hales… It will work.”

Derek bit his lip in protest. He suddenly didn’t care if the Argents and the Hales had united or not. What he worried about now was that… Stiles. He couldn’t marry Kate, because—

Stiles Stilinski.

He didn’t know what it was. But after the intimate kiss that Derek and Stiles had shared last night, there was something there. Whatever _it_ was, Derek had liked it, a lot. When he had felt the slightly soft texture of Stiles’ lips against his own: _it_ began deep in his chest; the twinge feeling in his heart that dropped slowly to his stomach and then igniting furiously, spreading all over his body, a feeling of bliss.

No, Derek had feelings for Stiles, he couldn’t marry Kate, but he also couldn’t disapoint his father. “Dad?”

“Yes?” His father smiled, he was cheered up now that Derek has agreed to go to the party and start over with Kate.

“How does it feel like… to fall in love?” Derek whispered.

His father’s eyes widened for a few seconds clearly stunned that his son had asked him such a question. “I, I uh.” Then his father smiled. Mr. Hale placed a gently palm on his wife’s lap. “When I first laid eyes upon your mother… I had thought she was the most beautiful girl in the world, no, the universe. Her eyes; they shined brighter than the Moon… and when I married her, she _became_ my Moon.”

“Oh… darling…” There were slight tears in Mrs.Hale’s eyes as she leaned in to hug and kiss her husband. “I love you dear.”

“Aww” Laura cooed as she watched from the side.

Derek nodded. He had understood now. He observed how clearly in love his parents were. His father’s words… Derek now realized that love… love is important, Derek knew what he must do now. Derek stood from his seat; he placed the invitation in his jacket pocket. “I need to go.” He declared.

His father stood up imediately and took Derek’s arm. “Son.”

“Yea?”

“I know you will fall in love.” His father genuinley smiled. “When you marry her, you will understand what it feels like, to be truly happy.”

Derek nodded, pretending to agree with his father. But in fact, he didn’t. His father did not know what makes Derek happy. He was blinded by the overall benefits of the Argents and Hales uniting.

“I’ll be back later tonight.” Derek said as he left the house.

~

‘ _She became my Moon.’_

His father’s words were burned in his mind as Derek walked the streets of Beacon Hills, going towards the Stilinski house. He had to find Stiles.

When Derek had finally reached Stiles’ home, he climbed up the back of the house and banged on Stiles’ window.

No one answered.

Stiles must’ve been out… but where?

Derek sat crossed legged on the roof of the house. He closed his eyes and began to sniff the air.

If he just concentrated hard enough…

And there it was. The familiar scent that Derek found comfort in, the scent that made his heart flutter. He could recognize it from anywhere. Now all he had to do was follow it.

Stiles’ scent leads him into the woods. Of course Stiles’ would be there.

As he got closer to Stiles, his ears picked up on grunts and Stiles shouting.

Oh fuck, was he in trouble?

And then Derek was running, running towards the screaming.

When Derek finally found Stiles, he was shirtless, panting, and…sweating. Derek almost forgot how to breathe for a second.

Stiles was throwing daggers at various targets hung up on different trees. Stiles had been training in the woods.

Stiles bawled as he flung another black dagger at one of the targets. With a loud pang, the dagger found its way in the center, bullseye.

Derek’s gaze was torn between the flexing of Stile’s body muscles shining with sweat, and how every single dagger landed on the center of every target. Amazing, yet deadly at the same time.

“Stiles.”

Stiles was breathing heavily, his hands on his hips. He turned his head, looking at Derek. “H-hey there big guy.” Stiles waved a gloved hand.

Derek jogged towards the hunter. As he got closer, the aroma grew stronger, Stiles was sweating… and Derek liked it, a lot.

“I uh, can I try something?” Derek placed a hand on Stiles’ shoulder, feeling the wettness of his skin.

“Sure wassup?”

Derek peered intently into Stiles’ large brown eyes. Focusing hard.

“Ugh… Derek?” Stiles raised a brow.

“Shh.” Derek whispered as he continued to stare deep into Stiles eyes.

And then he saw _it._ No, he _felt_ it.

He truly believed that what his father had said earlier... It _can_ happen to Derek too... with Stiles. _Falling..._

The way Stiles smelled, the way the corner of his lips curved when he smiled, the way his long lashes seemed to flutter over his eyes… those eyes that flicker a bright gold in the sunlight. When Derek looked into Stiles eyes, it was as if the whole world had stopped turning, everything in time just simply froze. There was only Derek and Stiles…

Derek smiled as he finally allowed himself to blink. “Sorry Stiles, I just…” Derek swiped gently at Stiles’ eye brow. “I thought I saw some dirt on your eye brow.”

“Ooookaay…” Stiles made a face if he totally knew Derek was lying, but didn’t question Derek’s weirdness. “So what’s up?

Derek casually slipped his eyes all over Stiles’ gleaming body.  “Nothing, I just wanted to come see you.”

Stiles grinned. “How nice of you, I would give you a hug, but I’m uh.” Stiles lifted his arms and looked down upon himself. “Very sweaty… so I don-“

Derek pulled his arms around Stiles, holding him, taking in the sweet aroma that is Stiles’s natural scent.

“Aw, someone’s feeling like a loveywolf today eh?” Stiles wrapped his arms around Derek’s back and returned the hug.

Derek had wished he could stay in this position forever, but he knew that at some point he had to let go.

“So Derek, I was wondering…” Stiles stretched his arms over his head casually. “Whatcha doing tomorrow? Wanna like hang out or something?”

Derek frowned. “I’m going to a party tommorow. It’s Allison Argent’s 19th birthday celebration.”

Stiles rolled his eyes. “The Argents?” Stiles sounded disappointed. He was probably upset that Derek was still associating with the Argents.

Derek placed a hand on Stiles’ arm. “I’m sorry Sti-“

Stiels shrugged off Derek’s hand. “It’s fine. I understand. You’re still going to marry Kate right. Sorry, I shouldn’t have. I…” Stiles pulled away and began to walk over to the training targets. “I gotta go now; I’ll see you around Derek.”  His tone was miserable.

Derek watched as Stiles began to retrieve his daggers. Fuck. Derek had never felt so crappy. Heaving a deep sigh, Derek turned to leave. He didn’t give up though, Derek had just realized something today, and he wasn’t going to just throw it all away now. ‘Stiles, please just wait for me, I will come for you, I promise’ he muttered under his breath as he headed in the direction back home.

Abruptly, Derek felt someone grab his shoulder. He quickly turned to see who it was. “Stiles?”

“Um no, It’s me Isaac.” Isaac Lahey and Vernon Boyd were standing in front of Derek. Both of them were werewolves part of the Hale Pack.

“Hey. Whatsup guys?”

Both werewolves held stern faces. “Come, there is something we have to show you.” Boyd ran back in the direction of the woods. Isaac followed along.

Confused and curious to see what it was, Derek followed, tracing their footsteps.

As they got closer to their target, a foul stench began to inhabit the air forcing Derek to crinkle his nose.

It smelled of _death._

Boyd pointed at a rough patch on the ground where a bloody, decapitated body occupied.

Derek watched in horror as he recognized the body. It was a werewolf from the Hale Pack. The blood was still fresh, wet, and a bright shade of red, splattered all over the ground and grass. 

“Fuck.” Derek inhaled a sharp breath. Whoever the killer(s) was, he/she had to be nearby still because this murder was a recent one. “Boyd. Isaac.”

Both werewolves turned their immediate attentions at Derek.

“Go back to town and warn the rest of the pack.” Derek barked.

They nodded and quickly ran off in the direction of Beacon Hills.

Derek took one more look at the bloodied body and then took off on the path back to his home. He had to tell his father about the killing.

~

When he got back home, he immediatley rushed to find his father, who was in his room, working on paperwork.

“Father!” Derek howled.

Composed, Mr.Hale looked up at his son, through his reading glasses. “What’s wrong son?”

“There was a killing in the woods. One of the pack, he’s….dead.” Derek exhaled. He felt beads of sweat dripping from his forehead.

Mr.Hale’s eyes widened for a moment and then abruptly he closed his eyes. “Derek, I will handle it.” Derek wondered how his father had remained so… calm.

Derek made a gesture in the air with both hands. “What are you going to do?!” The murder JUST happened, I saw the blood, and it was still fresh. Could it be hunters? Rogue werewolves?”

His father raised a hand to stop Derek from speaking. “Son, I will handle it, go back to your room, rest, you need to be ready for the party tomorrow.

What. Fuck the Argent’s party. One of their _own,_ a pack member was just recently killed and his father was just worred about the fucking Argent’s party?! Derek was more frustrated then ever. “B-bu-“

“Derek.” His father’s tone was full of authority now.

Grumbling, Derek left the office and headed back into his room.

~

It was late at night and Derek held the invatation in his hands, while he rested comfortably on his bed.

He slid open the envelope flap, and pulled out the paper within. Unfolding the paper, it read:

**_Dear Derek Hale,_ **

**_You are cordially invited to Allison Argent’s Masquerade party_ **

**_Celebrating her19 th annual Birthday _ **

**_(This is a black tie event. Please bring your own mask. However, we will supply you with a mask if you don’t own one)_ **

**_Sincerely,_ **

**_The Argent Family_ **

“Masquerade party…” Derek muttered under his breath. Hopefully wearing a mask would conceal him from Kate Argent. Derek chuckled as he closed his eyes to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love masquerades <3  
> I guarantee there will be some sort of smut in the next chapter ;)

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!  
> Questions? You can find my Tumblr here.  
> http://scarletbane.tumblr.com/


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